PAC Strategy Senior Principal Engineer
Salt River Project
Requisition ID: 19738
Join us in building a better future for Arizona!
SRP is one of the largest public power and water utilities in the U.S. providing electricity to approximately one million customers in the greater metropolitan Phoenix area. Since its founding in 1903, SRP has fostered a culture of stewardship and customer service consistently ranking as an industry leader in customer service according to J.D. Power and named one of Arizona's best employers by Forbes. SRP continues to adapt to its changing business environment by seeking innovative ways to reimagine utility service and the provision of critical resources essential to the life and economy of Arizona.
Why Work at SRP
At SRP, we foster an inclusive work environment and believe everyone should have a fair chance to work, regardless of who they are. That’s why we value teams with diverse perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds to help SRP deliver on its mission of providing reliable, affordable and sustainable water and power.
SRP's success is rooted in our employees' happiness, health, and safety. That's why we offer a comprehensive benefits package to meet the needs of our employees and enhance their well-being. In addition to competitive pay and performance incentives, eligible employees can take advantage of the following benefits:
- Pension Plan (at no cost to the employee)
- 401(k) plan with employer matching
- Available your first day: Medical, vision, dental, and life insurance
- Over 200+ hours of PTO (includes vacation days, holidays, floating holidays, and sick leave)
- Parental leave (up to 4 weeks) and adoption assistance
- Wellness programs (including access to a recreation and fitness facility)
- Short and long-term disability plans
- Tuition assistance for both undergraduate and graduate programs
- 10 Employee Resource Groups for career development, community service, and networking
Summary
The PAC Strategy Senior Principal Engineer serves as a recognized technical leader within SRP’s Protection, Automation, and Control (PAC) Strategy department, responsible for shaping and implementing strategic initiatives that modernize and optimize SRP’s PAC systems. This role drives innovation in substation operational technology, enabling a flexible, data-driven grid that supports inverter-based resources (IBR) integration, and ensures safe, reliable electricity delivery. The position combines advanced engineering expertise with leadership in standards development, compliance, and technology integration to align with SRP’s corporate strategies.
What You'll Do
- Lead Strategic Initiatives: Define and execute PAC strategy roadmaps, including modernization projects, substation virtualization, and integration of IBRs.
- Technology Leadership: Act as a subject matter expert (SME) in advanced technologies such as IEC 61850, synchrophasors, centralized protection & control, and virtualized PAC systems (vPAC).
- Project & Program Management: Manage large-scale projects and programs with full technical and budgetary responsibility.
- Standards & Compliance: Develop and maintain technical standards, ensure compliance with NERC O&P and CIP requirements, and lead cybersecurity and vulnerability assessments.
- Research & Development: Evaluate emerging technologies in SRP’s Technology Innovation Lab and recommend solutions to enhance PAC systems.
- Collaboration & Representation: Serve on industry committees (EPRI, NATF, IEEE, etc.) and represent SRP in technical forums, regulatory matters, and external organizations.
- Mentorship & Training: Develop and train engineers on technical best practices, project management, and strategic initiatives.
- Thought Leadership: Drive organizational change, foster innovation, and influence SRP’s vision for a modern, intelligent grid.
Education
Experience
Highly Preferred Skills
- Transmission and distribution systems, substation design, and protection and control (P&C) systems.
- Protective relaying settings calculation, analysis, and coordination.
- Proficiency with system analysis tools (ASPEN, ETAP, SKM, PSS/E, PSLF).
- IEC 61850 standard and digital substation.
- SCADA, real-time control, or industrial networking.
- NERC O&P and CIP standards.
- Strong leadership, strategic thinking, and ability to influence across organizational levels.
- Excellent communication skills for technical presentations and stakeholder engagement.
- Virtualization, edge computing, or software-defined networking for energy applications.
- Virtual machines, containerization, and cloud-native architectures.
- Distributed energy resource (DER) integration, microgrids, or grid flexibility solutions.
- Energy storage systems, inverter-based resources (IBR), and real-time grid analytics.
Additional Requirements and Qualifications
Hybrid Workplace
SRP currently offers a hybrid workplace, which allows employees whose jobs can be performed remotely, and who have sufficient technical capability, to telework up to three days per week. Although teleworking is available, all employees must live and work in Arizona.
Drug/Alcohol Policy Statement
To promote the safety and well-being of our employees, customers, and the communities we serve, SRP is committed to maintaining a drug/alcohol free work environment. Although marijuana may now be legal in Arizona, except as otherwise specified under Arizona law, SRP considers it to be an illegal drug for the purpose of our drug/alcohol policy because marijuana remains illegal at the federal level. Any candidate found to be impaired during the hiring process or who has the presence of an illegal drug or unauthorized substance in their system during the pre-employment drug/alcohol test may be disqualified from further consideration in the hiring process.
Equal Opportunity Employer Statement
Salt River Project (SRP) is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, military status, or any other protected status under applicable federal, state or local law.
Work Authorization
All candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States.
Currently, SRP does not sponsor H1B visas, OPT, or other employment-related visa's.